Well increasing the denied boarding compensation will be a big step forward in reducing delays.

The White House said Bush would announce a series of decisions, including action to aid travelers whose flights are canceled or delayed. The Transportation Department has been drafting regulations to increase the bump fees for travelers who buy tickets but wind up without a seat. The department has been considering increasing the fee from $200 to more than $600.

I'd like to see what Bush can do that will reduce delays starting next week.

I'm giddy with antcipation. I enjoyed the FoxNews report that just said the prez hopes to have new measures in place by the thanksgiving travel days. Obviously one of them (Bush or Fox) isn't aware how swiftly the airlines, FAA, ATC, DOT, and others implement change. We need proposals and studies and opinions and rulemaking committees.

I would love a picture of him in front of JFK with a big Missions Accomplished banner on Tuesday.

Quoting Fxra (Reply 4):I would love a picture of him in front of JFK with a big Missions Accomplished banner on Tuesday.

It's scary to think about, but if there's good weather for Thanksgiving and Christmas (i.e. no blizzards and no other delay-producers like reduced cigs/vis in fog/rain), he could actually get out there and try to take credit for the lack of delays...

No, he's talking about when the FAA started handing over FSS to Lockheed. They've had tons of problems, including missing flight plans, no 'local' knowledge, long wait times for briefers, etc. The problems still exist, however they are getting better.

Quoting Nycfly75 (Reply 7):Unused Military Airspace will be opened up to commercial flights

Without knowing which restricted areas are being opened, I wonder what "the plan" s for the airspace usage. Theres no way over the next week we can come up with and publish procedures (SID's, STARS, Pref routings) that can take advantage of these areas. Will i be able to flight plan through them or are they for strategic routing only by ATC?

Maybe this will allow us to have more places to hold while we wait to land at the NY Metros.

IMHO opinion, most of these measures are purely for the perception that we are doing something by the politcians. While the extra airspace will help some, it should have been done months ago and been able to be structured for better use. Unfortunately no one knew there was going to be a holiday travel rush around thanxgiving back in June.

Quote:I'm giddy with antcipation. I enjoyed the FoxNews report that just said the prez hopes to have new measures in place by the thanksgiving travel days. Obviously one of them (Bush or Fox) isn't aware how swiftly the airlines, FAA, ATC, DOT, and others implement change. We need proposals and studies and opinions and rulemaking committees.

I would love a picture of him in front of JFK with a big Missions Accomplished banner on Tuesday.

And flying in on a fighter jet as well...

Quote:Well increasing the denied boarding compensation will be a big step forward in reducing delays.

I'm not sure how, but I agree that is something the airlines need to do!!

Quote:The one I love was the airline industry association saying airlines are adding extra flights and more planes next week to cope with demand and minimize delays.

I thought they have been saying previously the delay issues were caused by too many planes flying - blaming all the bizjets which clog up the airways!!

So I guess airline extra planes don't stress the system.

Welcome to the wonderful world of the airlines!! "But the market demands that we schedule 400 RJ flights out of LGA in a thirty minute time period!! If we don't, someone else will!!"

Quoting Fxra (Reply 11):IMHO opinion, most of these measures are purely for the perception that we are doing something by the politcians. While the extra airspace will help some, it should have been done months ago and been able to be structured for better use. Unfortunately no one knew there was going to be a holiday travel rush around thanxgiving back in June.

Concur... I was surprised not to hear Bush's plan for eliminating thunderstorms, and exactly how he had planned to increased th AAR at some of these delay-prone airports. Maybe he covered those aspects when I was in the bathroom barfing over the stuff he'd said earlier...

Quoting RFields5421 (Reply 9):The one I love was the airline industry association saying airlines are adding extra flights and more planes next week to cope with demand and minimize delays.

The is actually not true at all as over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, there is minimal difference the in the number of flights. In fact, on Thanksgiving Day, Friday, and Saturday, there are SIGNIFICANTLY LESS flights than during an average week as airlines reduce the number of flights into business markets and operate more on a holiday schedule. Where there may be a few leisure destinations that see additonal flights or increased aircraft sizes, it balances out the frequency reduction into other airports.

Every year it is the standard story about increased delays around Thanksgiving due to "demand." There is no material difference in the number of flights from most other non-holiday periods, still less than the typical number of flights operated during the airlines' peak summer schedules.

There are just more people flying than an ordinary November week, meaning that load factors are higher, there are more people at the airport, and more clueless relatives driving in circles around the airport roadways waiting to pick up Aunt Jean who called to say "she just landed" and is still on the plane taxiing in from 22R.

Take NW for example, they are essentially shutting down the airline around 5pm on Thanksgiving Day. They cut the last 2 banks at DTW & MSP and the last bank at MEM on Thanksgiving since very few people travel on Thanksgiving night. On that Friday morning, there are many flights that are not operating.

These "delays" don't just show up on Thankgiving or Christmas, it just usually appears more in the limelight where the government wants to have you believe they are doing something. If there are "delays" they will say that they warned us, if there aren't "delays" they will take credit for averting them (even if they played no part in it - i.e., it was a nice sunny day in ORD/PHL/LGA/JFK/EWR).

Quoting ADXMatt (Reply 1):I'd like to see what Bush can do that will reduce delays starting next week.

Big mistake, this will only put himself in more crosshairs of democrats and liberals, that "if" something was to go wrong concerning operations, it will be "Bush's fault". Like OPNLguy, Fxra, and others in the camp of "I can't wait to see how many people miss their thanksgivings because of this stupid plan", are just simply excited by seeing people angry, miserable and upset for purely political agenda driven purposes. The feral gov't usually keeps it's hands of things like this and only after a disaster like the Valentines Day B6, or the NW New Years 1999 debacles occur, that self-promoting lawmakers jump in front of the podium to demand the airlines take responsibility for what happened. Bush is only trying to make an honest attempt at averting possible incidents like this from happening again.

Quoting Fxra (Reply 11):IMHO opinion, most of these measures are purely for the perception that we are doing something by the politcians. While the extra airspace will help some, it should have been done months ago and been able to be structured for better use. Unfortunately no one knew there was going to be a holiday travel rush around thanxgiving back in June.

And who's to say just because this was announced that the groundworks weren't initially laid in the several months ago? It's not like the president can just make a phone call saying he want Military or restricted airspace made available tomorrow. It most likely takes discussion and planning to determine which airspace can be made available that won't threaten national security. I find youcynicism childish, borish and off-candor uninspired. It's just another preamble to obvious forthcoming Bush-bashing.

Quoting Doug_Or (Reply 13):Quoting Fxra (Reply 11):
Unfortunately no one knew there was going to be a holiday travel rush around thanxgiving back in June.

Its a good thing I wasn't drinking anything, because I garuntee it would have gone right out my nose!

LMAO!!!!!

Quoting PanAm747 (Reply 12):But the market demands that we schedule 400 RJ flights out of LGA in a thirty minute time period!! If we don't, someone else will!!"

Sad but true I'm afraid.

Quoting Luv2cattlecall (Reply 18):So what is this..the war on airlines? The war on Air Travel? The war on the sky?

LMAO again!!!

Nice to know Dubbya has nothing more pressing to be dealing with (such as World Poverty, the clusterf*ck in Iraq, the strength of the dollar etc) and has taken time out of his golf sessions to (deep breath)...

...appoint an appointment committee who will appoint a team of Governmental planners to form an analysis committee which will answer to the recommendation committee which will then report to the Congressional committee on implemention (subject to appeal due process, approval from the senate, and the whims of any Captains of Industry who didnt get appointed on any of the other committees), which will implement findings for the recommendation of the consideration of selection and appointment of a task force which will bring its action plan before a new committee (to be decided) which will discuss findings and go in front of the house to produce its findings, no later than 2019. These findings will then be used as the basis for the Congressional Enquiry.

Of course the enquiry, which will cost the US taxpayer US$400m, will find that the delays are caused by all those RJs and nobody can do anything about it as binning them will bankrupt the airlines.

Or they could have just asked A-net

[Edited 2007-11-15 13:47:50]

What do you mean you dont have any bourbon? Do you know how far it is to Houston? What kind of airline is this???

How is it going to help? The airlines won't have any problem passing that extra "compensation" on to the customers. At which point, the customers will complain. Moreover, if you're bumped off a flight, the LAST thing you'd want is a free drink at the airport.

Quoting Fxra (Reply 11):IMHO opinion, most of these measures are purely for the perception that we are doing something by the politcians.

AMEN!

Quoting Luv2cattlecall (Reply 18):So what is this..the war on airlines? The war on Air Travel? The war on the sky? I'd suggest The war on passengers but NW already has a TM on that!

I'd be more ready to declare war on stupid passengers who slow security lines or who think they can go through JFK/ORD/LAX/SFO security half an hour early.

My point is if you don't want to fly, DON'T! There's always driving or the train. I don't think airlines do it on purpose to delay your flights. It is always easy for passengers to complain and for the government to impose stringier requirements on the airlines, but who picks up the tab when they're financially in the hole? Nobody. While I do agree delays and overbookings are a pain, I just accept it as being the flying times of today. You do your part like coming to the airport early, leave your "illegal" stuff at home, etc... and that's basically all you can do. The more you complain, the more time airlines will be spending on resolving your complain, instead of getting you to your destination earlier.

Quoting PSU.DTW.SCE (Reply 17):Every year it is the standard story about increased delays around Thanksgiving due to "demand." There is no material difference in the number of flights from most other non-holiday periods, still less than the typical number of flights operated during the airlines' peak summer schedules.

The problem with your statement is that you appear to be just considering airline traffic, to the exclusion of other IFR traffic. I can assure you that nearly every bigwig with a personal or corporate bizjet has travel plans for the major "getaway" airports, Florida and Colorado destinations to name but a few. Try a search for Snowbirds" or check with Sid R. @ MSPDD.

Quoting Jetjack74 (Reply 19):Like OPNLguy, Fxra, and others in the camp of "I can't wait to see how many people miss their thanksgivings because of this stupid plan", are just simply excited by seeing people angry, miserable and upset for purely political agenda driven purposes.

No, what I actually can't wait to see is the day when operational outsiders who don't have Clue-1 from frontline experience of how this stuff works, and should work will maybe start listening to the professionals in the trenches, without assuming that the comments and suggestions of those professionals are automatically for "purely political agenda driven purposes."

It's just damn wonderful that George has shaken some more military airspace loose, but without capacity improvements at the departure and arrival airports, it's tantamount to building a new 6-lane bridge across the river but doing nothing to expand the capacity of the 2-lane road that feeds the 6-lane bridge and feeds the traffic back into the 2-lane road on the other side of the bridge.

I'm not worried--I'm sure George understands all of it. including the fact that FAA has squandered years and billions on mis-managed projects. NextGen? Should have been here years ago...

25 Fxra
: Ok I'll play. If there had been a plan in the works, it would need to b published. Airspace redesigned and redesignated on charts. New SID's and STAR

26 OPNLguy
: Ouch! (Waiting for the TWA 800-downed-by-a-missile crowd to show-up and take the thread off-topic...) The only thing I hope for (and work towards) is

27 Ikramerica
: Saturday I don't think you are right. Saturday often has fewer flights in any week, but on Thanksgiving, I've seen airlines add flights. But thursday